Reading Thomas Merton’s thoughts about joy and sin recently, I said to myself “Yeah, that makes a whole lot of sense. I finally get it.” No, it’s not what you might think; the usual religious connection between the licentious behavior we pursue in the hopes of attaining joy, and sin. This is about understanding what sin is, which he explains in a manner that takes on a different meaning for me, than what I previously garnered from listening to Christian evangelical sermons.
Central to Christian ideology is the issue of sin, and the consequence of committing sins. Having grown up in the Catholic religion, sin was one subject I wrestled with, given that it was part of the compulsory practice to confess your sins to the parish priest before receiving communion at the weekly mass. What sins can a seven year old commit, and to have to confess them to a strange man sitting in a dark booth? By the time I was a young teen, I was disappointed in the Catholic religion. As I became familiar with the philosophy of eastern religions, I was introduced to the concept of joy being the essence of our true nature, and the laws of life that help us to stay connected to joy. This teaching is a lot more palatable to me, than that of the focus on the fear of eternal damnation, and of a vengeful God, who sits up there somewhere, and keeps a tab which has to be reckoned with on Judgment day, which we all must face when we exit this world (this is the doctrine I was taught as a child.)
Thomas Merton, a Catholic monk of the Trappist order, wrote this in his journals : “The love of God is blessedness, and that is joy, and to love God is to be full of joy…But the principal occasions by which we fall out of that love, are the seven deadly sins: Pride, Covetousness, Lust, Gluttony, Envy, Anger and Sloth. The reason these are sins (or more properly incitements to sin ) is that they lead us away from the love of God.
This way of thinking about sin takes a big load off of the feeling of guilt and fear about committing sins. Sin simply means that we allow the mind to cloud over the truth of who we are, which is the nature of joy. In Christianity, this joy is called Christ, in Hinduism, it is referred to as Consciousness, and in Buddhism, it is referred to as Clear Light.
Merton’s words mirror the concept of Consciousness as joy that resides within us: The love of God is light within us: the sins take that light and darken it. The love of God is a talent we possess within us: the sins keep us from multiplying that talent, and would take even that away, but that God`s presence remains in the heart of even the worst sinner.
So joy is already within us in the form of that light of Consciousness, and when we allow the difficult emotions to rule the state of our being, we lose touch with that joy, but it is still there, covered over by a cloud of heavy thoughts and feelings.
How do we get to that joy when we feel depressed, lonely and burdened by the sadness of all the suffering in the world? Even as adults, we can still find that exuberance and playfulness that children express, once their basic comfort needs are met. Children live in the present moment and are in awe of the wonder of discovering their world. Here are some ways that work to lead the mind away from heavy states and to recover the state of joyfulness that is natural to us, that I have mentioned in earlier posts.
Thomas Merton goes on to advise how to stay in touch with this joy, and this reminds me of the practice of mantra repetition from the teachings of eastern philosophy: “…The Holy Name of Christ should be on our lips, and His Holy Cross before us, and these are sources of humility and joy; then we may go about our work, or any of the things we do, full of joy and unconcern, not attached to anything we are doing, yet seeming to do that better still than before…but forgetting the past and the future, and not attached to the present, being still full of simplicity and sweet joy, by reflecting on Christ or His Saints.”
I feel so grateful for finding these words from Thomas Merton, it brings home to me that really, truth is one, and there are so many paths that we can choose. The truth has been misinterpreted intentionally or unintentionally and is the source of fanaticism and fear. Could it be that it is just a matter of semantics, and the ability to bridge the cultural divides? That what all beings everywhere are seeking, is how to uncover that original state of joy and are being misled by distorted spiritual teachings that prevent us from embracing our own power over the mind ?
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
Miruh – thanks for sharing these quotes. I have not read Merton much, but I came across similar sentiments on sin (in my own interpretation of them anyway) by other Christian mystics like St. Francis of Assisi and St. Theresa of Avila, and it helped for me to heal my own perception of Christianity and Jesus’ teachings. It sounds like I had a similar journey in that regard – I was raised Christian, and related to my spirituality on an entirely moral ‘good’ and ‘bad’ level, and then encountered Eastern religions and rejected Christianity for awhile as I embraced them. Now I just think great teachers have shown up throughout history in all different places to show us these truths and speak of them in different languages, and sometimes we have muddled them up when forming a religion, but that is a cultural phenomenon, and not really relevant. Thanks for stripping it down to what is essential. – Lisa
Very interesting post…I have much food for thought now!
Hello Lisa,
It seems much of the spirituality is lost in religion leaving a dry skeleton of dogma. Seekers who study the words of the mystics whether they are Christian, Jewish, Muslim or Hindu, begin to realize the common thread which exists in all traditions.
Thanks for sharing your own experience, we are fortunate to have access to the jewels of the many traditions that affirm our common heritage.
Love and blessings to you!
Hello Michelle,
And so do I, this subject cuts deeply into the psyche of people raised in the Christian tradition. Much to ponder here.
Deep peace to you!
Miruh, I love this post. God really does have 100 names. I’ve always wondered if I could see, in my lifetime, a gathering of people from all different faiths connecting and recognizing the truth in each other.
Also, I’d like to thank you for the suggestions you made to help lead oneself away from heavy states of being. This couldn’t have come at a better time for me personally
)
Hi Miruh,
I too am a recovering Catholic and I had to “confess” to things in which I had no concept. My brother actually confessed to burning a leaf with a magnifying glass, to which my sister and I ran so fast out of the church from bursting with laughter. Though I didn’t adhere to Catholicism, I am grateful that it gave me the opportunity to open my eyes and go elsewhere. Joy is in everything from clear decisions to flowers blooming. It’s in the way we see, the way we feel, the way we touch. Joy is here now.
Thanks for this joyful post my friend.
Hello Nicole,
I believe that there are already gatherings of people of different ethnicity and creeds coming together to celebrate their unity in diversity, though it does not seem that way because of the present focus on those that seek to divide. It doesn’t take that much to tip the scales if more people like you hold that vision for a conscious world order.
May light and joy follow you always!
Hello Alexys,
Like your brother, I too had to make up some things to confess about, I wonder if priests look forward to being entertained, hearing confessions from kids.
I agree, it was the searching for what the church didn’t offer me in spiritual fulfillment that led to a richness in learning from other world traditions. The greatest gift of all like you say, was finding out that joy is right here in the midst of everyday life experience.
Thanks for sharing your exuberance here!
Miruh, as one steps back into the position of more astute observer, it becomes possible to take in perception from alternative vantage points. One realizes one can cloose to learn from others without necessarily agreeing or always adopting their perspectives. Every energy being is a spiritual teacher emerging from a coccoon as if to transform yet again, into a miraculous butterfly. This process recurrs. Every lesson is like a new life. Everyone re-experiences a circle of life.
Thank-you for sharing your thoughts and ah has about sin. Sin is loaded word. If I was pressed to define sin, I would say that it is when we do something that is not aligned with our authentic self, that which makes us feel that we are separate from God would be the closest thing to what we have come to call sin. I do not believe that it is a matter of keeping score as many religions would have us think. It is a matter of knowing that we are of the divine and therefore we are divine by nature.
Hello Liara,
“One realizes one can choose to learn from others without necessarily agreeing or always adopting their perspectives.” Everyone is here to teach us on some level.
Thanks for your sharing your wisdom my friend.
Deep peace to you!
Hello Mark,
Well said, I really like your perspective on sin, it has so much less charge to the word with the meaning you offer.
Thanks for your clarity and wise input on this loaded subject.
Love and blessings!
Oh, Miruh! We have walked the same path, spiritually. It would drive me crazy as a child to be told that we all have sin on our souls. How can a baby sin, I asked? A baby carries the sin of Adam until baptism. My immediate thought was well pooh on Adam! What God would hold the sin of an ancestor against an innocent child?
As you can see, I had lots of trouble going through parochial school. A glutton for punishment, I hung in there until I was a middle-aged adult. Then the hegemony and misogyny got the better of me and I went elsewhere.
In my studies, I have been blessed to find evidence that we all are trying to say the same thing. Many names, one face; many spokes, one wheel. I love reading a little book I have by Jeffrey Moses called “Oneness: Great Principles Shared by All Religions.” It is a reminder of this very fact.
As always, I love visiting your site. You always stimulate, enlighten and enrich.
Blessings, dear Friend!
Hello Linda,
For those of us who have been down this road, it’s a blessing in disguise to seek out truth and question what we learn. Does it resonate with the core of beingness or does it feel skewed somehow? I think inner wisdom drives us to look for real answers as to the nature of reality.
Thanks for the reference to Jeffrey Moses’s book, I will read it.
Your presence and tender words here always brings gentle loving kindness to this space.
Be well my friend.
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